It’s hard to enjoy your birthday when you’re battling a raging illness, but in this story, battling the expectations of others is just as difficult.

When her father insists on a fancy dinner despite her medical condition, one teen is forced to choose between enduring pain or disappointing her family.

Read on for the full story.

AITA for refusing to go to my own birthday dinner?

I (17F) am turning 18 in a couple days.

I’ve been having a lot of medical issues the last couple months.

Don’t know if anyone knows what this is, but I’ve had cellulitis twice in the last 4 months and over 25 abscesses a lot of which I’ve had to get lanced.

I’ve been miserable and in a lot of pain for a while now to the point where I can barely walk, let alone go to school.

So then she gets a surprising call from her dad.

My dad calls me up today and informs me that he went behind my back after I told him days prior that I was having a bad flare up.

I haven’t been able to leave my bed for days because I was in so much pain, and I told him that I wouldn’t be able to celebrate my birthday.

Still, he booked a reservation at a fancy restaurant for me and my entire family to go to tomorrow to celebrate my birthday.

Plus, he also knows I hate the food at this restaurant lol.

She tries to reason with him, but he’s set on attending the dinner.

I asked him if we could reschedule for next week.

I reminded him of what I had told him a few days prior and that I would just be in pain the entire dinner if I went.

I also wouldn’t be able to wear the appropriate clothes to a place like that because I can’t wear anything but baggy clothes right now because of pressure on the abscesses really hurts me.

He told me that he didn’t care and I would have to suck it up and go because he put a deposit down.

She tries to get support from her mom, who takes her dad’s side.

I went to my mom and started crying that I didn’t think I could go because of how much pain I was in.

She said that it’s just a couple hours and I should just go so his money he put down on the deposit doesn’t go to waste.

She said that I was being selfish which just made me feel even worse than I already do.

AITA?

This teen was caught between a rock and a hard place.

What did redditors have to say?

There’s clearly a lack of understanding from her parents.

Parents don’t always know best.

Her father’s priorities are way out of wack.

This commenter advises the teen to stand her ground!

Her father’s careless gesture didn’t feel much like a celebration.

Her parents clearly need a reminder that no amount of money can outweigh the importance of your health.

If you liked this post, you might want to read this story about a teacher who taught the school’s administration a lesson after they made a sick kid take a final exam.